Thursday, June 04, 2009

Ocean Men - Extreme Dive

Felix L. freediving with Lemon Sharks Photo by Fiona Ayerst

One of the best ocean documentaries that I have seen is "Ocean Men - Extreme Dive" by Bob Talbot featuring freedivers Pipin Ferreras and Umberto Pelizzari. The movie tells the story of each and marks the clear differences in style - Pipin was all about power while Umberto was elegance - both attain records (at the time) in different disciplines.

The cinematography is absolutely phenomenal coupled with a great musical score - all elements make for an exceptional experience. I saw the movie twice at an IMAX theater - wish I could get my hands on a DVD - although it seems like it was never released.

I will never forget the last words spoken in the movie:

"A true diver knows that the essence of freediving is not to challenge others but to dive deep within himself and for a few precious moments become one with the sea"

Becoming one...Photo by: Fiona Ayerst

If you do not freedive - you will never understand the quote above - but anyone that does will know exactly what it means...and in becoming one with the sea you will respect, love, and yearn for it.

Disclaimer

Please be aware of the fact that diving with sharks can be potentially dangerous. Do NOT closely interact with sharks, touch them, feed them unless you are very experienced and know exactly how to interpret their body language. While it might look easy and harmless to interact with sharks the way we do, we do NOT encourage this type of underwater activity.